Bali Latest News, an up to date information in Bali

Australia Offers Denpasar Garbage Processing Technology

An Australian NGO has offered the Denpasar city administration effective and environmentally friendly garbage processing technology. "We earnestly wished to help the Denpasar city administration reduce the garbage produced in the area," Pieter Pistilli, representative of the Australian NGO in Denpasar said Tuesday Wednesday.

He said using the method his side could recycle organic garbage and plastic into useful goods. "We produce organic garbage into compost or organic fertilizer and plastic waste will be processed by burning it and produced into oil for diesel engines," he said.

He said this method of garbage processing in Indonesia is now only done in Batam. In the meantime Denpasar city secretary AA Rai Iswara welcomed the offer, because his side had tried many ways of dealing with garbage, but so far not not very successful.

Top Art Figure Wants WWII Japanese Caves Preserved

High-profile painter and art museum curator Nyoman Gunarsa wants Klungkung regency to preserve the World War II Japanese caves on the outskirts of Gianyar city and promote them as a tourist attraction instead of closing them off and destroying the network of diggings as has been proposed.

Gunarsa said the proposal to destroy the caves was misguided because they had historical value. He said he was ready to manage and promote a properly cared for cave complex if asked to do so.

He said government officials proposing to destroy the caves did not appreciate history and or care about culture. The caves were built by slave labourers enlisted during the Japanese occupation of Indonesia. Saying he was surprised at any suggestion the caves should be closed, he said:

�Other areas of Bali, such as Ubud, are seeking places to promote as tourism attractions. How is that Klungkung, which has such historical sites, wants to destroy them?�

Gunarsa said the current condition of the caves and the past development of the historical site had gone off course. He said placement of a giant Ganesha statue near the caves� entrance had no connection with Japanese wartime site and be removed.

He wants the site developed with workshops and art shops sharing a theme with Japanese culture and history and suggests rehabilitation of the cave system � used by the Japanese to avoid Allied bombing during their occupation of Bali from 1941-45 � is an opportunity to build a sister-city relationship between Klungkung�s capital, Semarapura, and Kyoto in Japan.

There would even be scope for a statue at the entrance to the cave in memory of the Balinese who built the caves and for carved reliefs telling the story of the caves� construction.

Thousands of People Accompanied Cremation of King of Peliatan IX

Cremation procession of the King of Peliatan IX on Tuesday (Nov 2) ran solemnly. Thousands of people accompanied the corpse to the grave of Dalem Puri Ubud, about two kilometers from Peliatan Royal Palace. Other than relatives, a number of officials of Bali Province, Bali Police, Armed Forces, Gianyar Regency, kings of Solo and Bali up to community leaders in Bali and Gianyar in particular were also present to accompany the deceased to the cemetery.

Atmosphere of the Peliatan Royal Palace and along the roads to the cemetery had been filled with thousands of residents from the early morning. Domestic and foreign tourists were also present to witness such cremation procession that had been prepared since three months ago. Cremation procession of the King of Peliatan IX was categorized to be grandiose enough throughout the implementation of the same cremation in Ubud. This could be seen from the pickup of Naga Banda paraphernalia in the procession some time ago to the clan temple of Ubud Royal Palace by using two elephants ridden by the Crown Prince, Cokorda Putra Nindia. It was then followed by vehicle of cremation in the form of bade tower with the height of 25.5 meters and a weight of 10 tons as well as bull sarcophagus with the height of 8 meters. Such height caused the electrical cable along the road passed through to be temporarily disconnected.

The whole procession of cremation started from the morning. Procession was performed in the semanggen (where the corpse laid down) and in the ritual paraphernalia in the form of bade tower and bull sarcophagus. Then, the Naga Banda (dragon) that previously placed at the semanggen was then taken out, followed by raising the body to bade tower through bamboo stairs. Furthermore, the Naga Banda symbolized the escort of the spirit of the King of Peliatan IX where the bowing procession was carried out by Ida Pedanda Nabe Geria Peling Padang Tegal, Ubud.

In the meantime, procession of the corpse�s departure was preceded by spiritual road clearing-way, then Angklung gamelan orchestra, pengawin, ritual oblations, tetukon (symbol of the body), checkered baris dance, palanquin, kaki patuk nini semprit, white bull sarcophagus, dragon, and finally the bade tower. Such convoy reached hundreds of thousands of people.

Elder figures of the Peliatan Royal Palace, Cokorda Putra Nindia, on the sidelines of the cremation procession, said the procession involved 34 hamlets in the subdistrict of Ubud, Tegallalang, Sukawati and Payangan amounting to approximately 7,200 people. He added that bearers of bade tower were taken from eighteen hamlets with seven shifts. They did not include the bearers of the white bull and dragon.

China Helps Realize Bali as Community-Based Tourism

Authority of China promised to help Bali in creating the community-based tourism. Indeed, this bijou island has such tourism potential model. In China itself, there had been people�s homes that had directly functioned as tourist accommodation, and even its facilities could parallel to the five-star amenities.

Similar model will also be implemented in Bali to empower the communities later on. Therefore, they would be able to delight in the sweetness of tourism in person. This concept resembled to the tourism village in Bali, said Mangku Pastika after attending the plenary session of the Bali House not long ago.

According to the Governor of Bali, China had also been ready to build a coal-fired power plant. He ascertained that development of such coal-fired power plant at Celukan Bawang, Buleleng, should be ready to work on by November 2010 and accomplished in 2012. This electricity supply with 340 MW power would be undertaken in three stages.

He added it constituted an investment concept or business and not a loan fund. The result of the electricity produced by the company would be sold to the state-owned electricity or PLN to supply the electricity demand throughout Bali.

Additionally, Governor of Bali observed that China would also help realize the green Bali Province. There would be one company in Shanghai, China, which was ready to help create the green province. The method taken was by working with the United Nation Environment Program (UNEP) which would help in the field of green economy.

According to Governor of Bali, the three elements posed an agreement made with China for Bali when performing a working visit together with the Vice President Boediono, not long ago.

IDR 1 billion for coral reef restoration in Badung

Government of Badung Regency will restore the coral reefs growing along the coastal regions in Badung until 2014. Even, for recovering the life of marine biota of Badung, it had been prepared a budget worth IDR 1 billion. It denoted the funding of central government resourcing from international aid agencies and regional budget. The budget itself would be disbursed in stages each year.

Based on the data of government, the current length of coastline in the Southern Bali reached 82 kilometers. The stretch of southern coastline started from Tanjung Benoa, Mengiat Beach, Uluwatu Beach up to Kuta Beach. �Since two years ago, the restoration of Southern Bali coastal region have been undertaken in stages in order the coral reef can grow,� said the Head of Badung Fisheries and Maritime Services, I Made Badra, in the midst of Coral Restoration on the Peninsula Beach, Nusa Dua, Sunday (Oct 17).

Badra also said that Badung Government was very committed to the recovery of damaged coral reefs as the activities proposed in the Nusa Dua Fiesta 2010 by Bali Tourism Development Corporation (BTDC). Some beaches in Badung Regency should be restored due to damaged condition caused by human. �The existence of coral reef has an important meaning in the effort to preserve the marine environment,� he said.

In the meantime, coral reefs also had an important role as a buffer against the erosion and habitat of various fishes so that later on fishermen would be easier to catch fish and unnecessary to sail too far. Additionally, coral reefs posed a leading producer of white sand to prevent abrasion. �Please do not allow people to bomb the fish because it will harm our environment. Let�s return to the concept of Tri Hita Karana,� he appealed.